Floorboard
by ThereWillBeLemons
Summary: He said that it would be like he never existed, and after nearly two decades, it was. Until she finds the proof of his existence under her floorboard.


It was three months since Charlie's funeral when Bella decided that they needed to clear out the house.

Sue had decided to move back to La Push about a month after her husband's death. She was old and it was hard living so far away from her children and grand children on her own. Now, she was living with Seth and his wife Gemma and their two daughters Tessa and Sophia.

So, one day in late June, Bella and Sue rounded up the pack and assigned them tasks through out the house.  
It took nearly two days to pack a lifetime's worth of belongings into sixty three boxes, four trunks. Some of the stuff went back with Sue to Seth's house, some to Bella and Jake's and some to Charlie's friends and the pack.

Bella was making a last check through the house when she spotted the rug in her old room.  
She assumed that Colin and Brady thought she wanted it left, but she didn't mind rolling it up herself.

After rolling the rug up and propping it up against the door jam, Bella took a moment to look around her old bedroom.

It really hadn't changed much since she had left to move in with Jake.

The colour on the walls was faded from a relatively light purple to almost white, with darker patches where posters and pictures had hung.

The hard wood floors still could do with a good sanding and waxing and-

She had never noticed the slightly loose floorboard near the back right corner. It was just a fraction higher than the other floorboards, and her desk had stood over it the whole time she occupied the room, so it wasn't really surprising that she hadn't.

She walked over to it and put her foot on it, testing her weight. She expected it to maybe just creak a bit, so she was surprised when it sprang up at one end under her foot.

Curious, she bent down and slotted her index finger into the gap and pulled the floorboard away.

Concealed in the cavern was a black shoe box.

Huh. Someone had hidden something in her room! Maybe Renee had left it when she was still living here.

Bella lifted the box and the bags out of the hole and sat down cross legged on the floor.

She pulled the box into her lap and removed the lid. Inside were a couple of CD's and various pictures and papers.

She smiled and picked up the first picture. As she looked at the face in the photo, her smile melted off her face.

"_It'll be like I never existed…__"_

That was what he had said, and yet here was carbon evidence that he had, nearly twenty years later.

She hadn't thought of him for nearly a decade, and now his memory was back to haunt her.

She had fallen in love with her best friend after he saved her from herself, and now her first real love was being pushed back into focus.

Heavy footsteps echoed on the staircase, and a familiar deep voice called her name.

"Bella? You up here?" Jacob called.

She blinked, and opened her mouth to speak. No words came out, only a weak whimpering noise.

"Bells?" Jacob asked as he entered the bedroom. He saw her sat near the window with the box in her lap. He saw the devastated look on her face and crossed the room to her side.

"Bella, honey, what's wrong?" he asked gently, "Did you find some picture of Cha- oh."

Bella's bottom lipped trembled, and she couldn't force herself to look at her husband.

She hoped to god he didn't think that she was regretting her choice.

They sat in relative silence for a minute or so before Jacob spoke.  
"Bella. What's this?" he asked. His voice was low and controlled, although she could see the slight blurring of his hand as he fought to control his temper.

She dropped the pictures back into the box and flung her arms around her husband's shoulders.

"Jake, I'm sorry. Please don't think I regret any choices. I don't. I love you. It was just a shock!" she pleaded, "I haven't thought about him in years, and it was just all in my face so suddenly. I love you. I love you, baby."

Jacob nodded and his arms wound around his wife's waist. He pushed his face into her hair and inhaled deeply and then sighed. The hot air on her neck was soothing and Bella clung to Jake's shoulders and pressed her face into the hot skin on his neck.

"I know, Bells." he croaked.

Bella shuddered in relief and loosened her grip slightly.

"I love you, Jake." she whispered.

"I love you too, Bells." he whispered back.

There were more footsteps on the stairs, and Seth appeared accompanied by their son, Caleb. Caleb was sixteen and huge like his father. There was a new generation of werewolves in La Push, and it was likely that Caleb would be their Alpha when Sam stepped down. Their daughter, Hannah had been imprinted on by Jared and Kim's son Isaac, and they were both downstairs helping to sort out the mountains of possessions.

Seth and Caleb both had sheepish expressions on their faces. They, along with the rest of the pack who were downstairs, had just heard the discussion between Jake and Bella.

"Uh, mom… Uncle Paul's here with the van, and Kim says we're about ready to load." said Caleb.

Seth grinned awkwardly and nodded in confirmation.

"Okay, thanks guys." Bella said hoarsely.

They both smiled and left to return downstairs.

Bella took a deep breath and pulled away from Jacob.

He smiled gently down at her, and she returned it and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

"Thank you." she whispered.

He nodded, and stood, offering her his hand.

"I'll be right there, I'm just going to clear this stuff up." she said.

He nodded again, and left to go downstairs.

Bella exhaled shakily and bent down to pick up the box and replace the floorboard.

She replaced the lid with a snap, and gripped the box tight.

"Good bye, Edward Cullen." she whispered before turning round to leave the room.  
She shut the door gently and walked down the stairs.

There was a black plastic bag near the bottom of the stairs full of trash, and she put the box into it before tying to the top in a tight knot.

She turned to the group trying to inconspicuously watch her and smiled.

She clapped her hands together in a business like manner.

"Right. There's a floor board that needs fixing, so some one needs to do that. And Hannah, could you please take this bag out the dumpster?" she said.

"Sure mom" Hannah said as she picked up the trash bag. Bella smiled and stroked her daughter's hair affectionately.

She turned back to the hulking group of men. Teddy bears, really.

"Alright then. Let's load some boxes."

_And it was like he never existed…_


End file.
